Share

SPRINGHILL GROUP COUNSELLING: Hi-tech wrinkle buster

The age of your skin may not equal your chronological age. Hopefully it's a lower number, but if higher you may not like the fact that you are well ahead in accumulating wrinkles.

Can we really quantify signs of ageing? Yes, and cosmetic companies are offering to do so as part of beauty counselling that encourages you to buy time-stopping skincare to make you look young.

SK-II has come up with various measurement tools to gauge multiple signs of ageing and calculate the age of the skin.

Two years ago, the Japanese brand introduced a skin phone that pinches the skin and records how it responds to stress. The purpose of this compression imaging device is to measure the skin power quotient (SPQ), which is the ability to withstand stress and maintain its texture, radiance and firmness.

At its counters, a bigger diagnostic device is now being used to measure texture, radiance and firmness as well as spots and wrinkles. Called the Magic Ring, it provides a full-face analysis that produces scores in five criteria that contribute to a youthful-looking complexion.

SK-II has also developed a new measure, the Ageless Vector, to quantify radical firmness, which is determined by skin thickness, elasticity and the integrity of the shape of the basal layer (the bottom layer of the epidermis).

The measurement is based on the angle of fine lines and wrinkles _ the larger the angle, the greater the decline in radical firmness.

The Ageless Vector is applied in evaluating the effectiveness of SK-II new anti-ageing products: Essential Power and Essential Power Rich Cream. Applied on the skin as a double moisturiser, both of the two formulas feature Acanax Complex, containing an extract taken from the root of Siberian ginseng, harvested from an organic farm in South Korea's Jeju Island.